In 2021 the Divas made the decision to donate to their favourite charities instead of giving clients gifts for Christmas. In 2022 we’re doing it again, and we hope you agree that this way of gifting will bring many more smiles than sending another bottle of bubbly!
Fiona has selected Support Act
The overwhelming highlight of my year is seeing live music again after it being on the ice during the Covid shenanigans. Any holy cats, it’s been a watershed year in stand-out gigs for me: Amyl and the Sniffers, Gorillaz, Ladyhawke, Gang of Youth, Sampa The Great and Hilltop Hoods.
So live music is BACK, baby – that’s the good news! But the not-so-ace news is that after nearly 2.5 years of zero gigs and, therefore, zero income, many performers and struggling. Even if they are doing Ok, the industry is still being kicked in the nuts by weather cancellations, promoters going bust and being in an industry that is much loved but very underpaid and under-supported.
Support Act provides much-needed support, training, advice and dollars to help performers stay in the industry and look after themselves and their art.
Bonus photo of the Amyl and The Sniffers gig as part of the Sydney Festival in January. It was my first outing to see live music since the lockdowns, and my god, I lost my tiny mind. It was a tour-de-force in passion, spunk and grit. Amy and the band gave Covid two thumbs up and delivered an absolute banger of a show. This is a world-class band – see them while you can!
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Melissa has selected The Breast Cancer Network Australia
Breast cancer is something I grew up being quite aware of from a young age, a horrible disease that has impacted not only my own family but millions of people around the world every year. Sadly, I have lost both my grandmothers due to breast cancer and, luckily, had another member of the family win her battle. Unfortunately, it is something I will have to monitor and look out for as it has been so common on both sides of the family.
The breast cancer network is continuing to raise awareness and support. Their main goal is to help women all over Australia have the best possible journey while facing something so scary. The work they do is amazing, and something that I feel needs to be more recognised as they continue to set goals to improve the way of living with breast cancer and even life after breast cancer. I know that this donation won’t make a cure for cancer, but it will help get us one step closure to telling this disease to bugger off for good.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Karyn has selected Indigenous Literacy Foundation
Following the same theme as last year, my chosen charity is focused on the littlies who have no choice about the circumstances they are born into and deserve, at the very least, to receive an education in a country we consider to the part of the first world.
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation works with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander remote communities, providing culturally relevant books and learning resources and programs. The Foundation provides book packs to children of all ages; they translate popular books into First Languages so that kids can engage with literacy in familiar languages and also support the publishing of books written by Communities, for Communities, in languages of their choice.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Trina has selected The Australian Literacy & Numeracy Foundation
I am choosing Share-a-Book Program via The Australian Literature & Numeracy Foundation.
They supply books and other learning aids to support marginalised communities, Refugees, First Nations and vulnerable Australians by assisting these communities in gaining knowledge, language, literacy & communication and comprehension skills, as well as mental imagery and creativity, which allows freedom and the basic human right to have a voice! With Covid, domestic violence, and the cost of living amongst the few reasons for the increase in homelessness in Australia, providing books to those in need to help them gain knowledge so they can learn how to be heard and to be seen seems important.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Rachael has selected MS Australia
My chosen charity is the Multiple Sclerosis society. One of my closest friends was diagnosed with MS 5 years ago and watching her go through massive changes to her health, body, and even her personality has been very emotional and hard to watch
MS is such a scary chronic neurological disease that is hard to diagnose as the symptoms vary so much from person to person. It is also a disease that impacts more women than men. It affects your day-to-day living, with loss of mobility, vision and brain function, and there is no known cure.
I have been lucky enough to do a few Triathlons over the past few years to raise money and awareness for MS; however, my own health hasn’t allowed me to do this in recent times, so I would love to be able to give them my donation this year to make up for it.
Read More about this Charity. Click Here
Emma has selected Dachshund Rescue Australia
I live with the worst-behaved dachshund ever and have threatened him with being tied up to the letterbox to see if someone else will have him; lucky for him, he is cute so continues to live another day in our house.
I am thankful, though, for places like Dachshund Rescue Australia that are able to re-home dachshunds in need to a safe, loving forever home with people who understand the quirks of the breed. They provide education resources for current and potential owners whilst working with responsible, registered breeders and relevant individuals and organisations for the health and betterment of the breed.
Read More about this Charity. Click Here
Sue has selected Big Group Hug
My choice of charity for this year is “Big Group Hug”, an organisation serving local communities to tackle child poverty. One in six children in Australia live in poverty.
The Diva Works donation will help support vulnerable families by providing new and pre-loved donated goods for children in their care, from newborns to 16 years olds. Items that are distributed range from formula, clothes, cots, car seats, prams and toys to toiletries. Having been orphaned at 14, I was very fortunate to have my elder sister to rely on, but I wish that I had received a Big Group Hug to help her out at the time.
Thank you, Diva Works, for your super-generous donation and for sharing a hug with a child. “The warmth, The safety, The spontaneous smile that is the result of a hug. There is nothing better.”
Read More about this Charity. Click Here
Andrew has selected Men’s Mental Health Australia
Two and a half years ago, I lost my cousin and best friend Brent to suicide. He was an amazing person; he had a successful plumbing business, lots of friends and a loving family. There is not a day that goes by where I don’t think about him and our times together. I often wonder, ‘could I have done more?’. But some mental health issues are so debilitating!
I know that simple things like talking to each other, listening, checking in on a loved one and just giving a nice hug are paramount to helping people through their rough journey.
This charity is no longer available online
Celeste has selected Orange Sky
I’ve chosen to support Orange Sky. I’ve seen these guys in action on a cold winter’s night in the city. A van set up with washing machines, a shower and six orange chairs sits outside the van. Homeless people can come along to have their clothes washed, have a shower and pull up one of the chairs to engage in non-judgmental conversation with a crew of volunteers.
Damn legends!
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Nicole has selected Oz Harvest
OzHarvest rescues good quality and surplus food from commercial outlets and delivers it directly and free of charge to more than 1,300 charities supporting and feeding hungry people, at the same time stopping good food from going to waste and landfill. Through food rescue operations and food relief services, they are building a sustainable food culture where everyone can access a fresh, nutritious meal.
OzHarvest Nourishing our country!!
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Desiree has selected Diabetes Australia
Diabetes is recognised as the world’s fastest-growing chronic condition. 280 Australians develop diabetes every day. That’s one person every five minutes. Over the last year, two close family members were diagnosed with diabetes, and the impact this condition has not only on the individual but also on friends and family is incredible.
The pressure on the individual to constantly monitor exactly what they eat and drink and how active they are on any day needs to be second nature as this all can impact their metabolism and the managing of their diabetes.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Lisa has selected PanKind – The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation
My charity of choice is PanKind – The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation. Over 4,000 Australians are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer every year, making it the eighth most common form of cancer in the country. Pancreatic cancer continues to have a massive physical and emotional toll on families — with various treatments only managing the disease. The Australian Pancreatic Cancer Foundation’s mission is to dramatically increase survival rates and quality of life for pancreatic cancer patients and their families
We lost a very close friend to pancreatic cancer 4 years ago, and to see what he went through, as well as his family was heartbreaking and devastating. It is often diagnosed late due to the vague symptoms, and therefore aggressive treatment is required but is often unsuccessful. If they can improve the outcome/survival rate for one person, then that’s wonderful.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Maddison has selected Support the Girls
My charity of choice is: Support The Girls Australia. These guys are here to help empower girls and women to break the cycle of poverty and oppression. Support the Girls Australia ensures women have self-respect and dignity by providing them with bras, underwear and sanitary products. They are helping to give another woman a chance to get back on her feet.
Every woman deserves to have basic necessities and access to sanitation items. It is not just homeless women or women impacted by domestic issues that are in need. Women who are single parents and can just afford to feed their children and don’t have much left to take care of their own basic needs also benefit from the work of Support The Girls.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
Lily has selected Australian Alzheimer’s Research Foundation
My charity of choice is the Australian Alzheimer’s Research Foundation. 250 Australians are diagnosed with dementia every day. It’s the second leading cause of death in Australia, with more than 472,000 Australians currently living with Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease, and this number is growing. It’s estimated that more than 1M Australians will have Alzheimer’s by 2058 without a significant medical breakthrough.
The brain degeneration that occurs in Alzheimer’s disease affects memory, thinking skills, emotions, behaviour and mood. As a result, a person’s ability to carry out daily activities becomes impaired.
I’ve chosen this charity as a close friend, and my brother-in-law’s mother has Alzheimer’s. I can’t imagine what they go through every day, seeing a loved one slip a little further away from them each day.
There is no current cure; however, through research, there is an increased understanding of physiological and genetic influences and lifestyle factors associated with its onset.
Read more about this Charity. Click Here
